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Everything we know, free and ungated.
Guides, checklists and honest buying help. No email wall, no download form, no 40-page PDF that turns out to be a brochure.
The library
Start wherever your next trip is weakest.
Each guide is written to be useful on its own. None of them require buying anything from us.
Complete walkthrough
New to camping? The whole trip, in nine steps
What car camping actually is, where to go, how to sleep warm, what to eat, and which gear each part needs — including where our answer is to borrow it instead of buying it.
Start the walkthroughPlanning
How to plan a first camping trip you will actually repeat
The 48-hour weekend, planned backwards from the one thing that ruins first trips: arriving after dark.
Read the guideFamilies
Camping with kids: the 12 things that actually prevent meltdowns
Written by process of elimination. Most of it has nothing to do with gear, and the gear part is short.
Read the guideCamp kitchen
The camp kitchen that fits in one box
What to bring, what to leave, and the two-burner argument nobody needs to have.
Read the guideSleep
Why you were cold last time (and it was not the sleeping bag)
Temperature ratings, R-values, and the single cheapest fix for a bad night outdoors.
Read the guidePower & light
Lighting and power at camp without carrying a generator
How much light you actually need, where headlamps beat lanterns, and honest arithmetic on solar.
Read the guideDogs
Camping with a dog: a first-timer field guide
Heat, paws, water, wildlife and the leash rules that vary campground to campground.
Read the guideTool
The Clarion Camp Checklist
The list we use to sanity-check a car-camping weekend before it leaves the driveway. Free, on this page, no email needed.
Use the checklistBuying help
Ask us instead
Tell us the trip and we will give you a shortlist — including when the honest answer is that you do not need to buy anything.
Send us the detailsFree, no email required
The Clarion Camp Checklist
Built for a two-night car-camping weekend for two to four people. Cut it down for backpacking; add layers for shoulder season. Print it, screenshot it, or copy it — it is yours.
Sleep system
- Sleeping bag rated 10-15°F below expected low
- Sleeping pad (R-value 2+ for summer, 4+ for shoulder season)
- Pillow — inflatable or a stuff sack of clothes
- Extra blanket for the first cold hour
- Dry sleep socks that never leave the tent
Shelter
- Tent, poles, stakes — counted, not assumed
- Groundsheet or footprint
- Tarp and cord for rain or shade
- Mallet or rock for stakes
- Small repair tape
Light & power
- Headlamp per person
- Lantern for the table
- Spare batteries or a charged power bank
- String lights to mark guy lines
- Phone cable that actually works
Kitchen
- Stove and fuel (check fuel level before leaving)
- Lighter plus a backup fire starter
- Pot, pan, and one sharp knife
- Plates, cups, cutlery per person
- Water containers — 2L per person per day
- Biodegradable soap, sponge, trash bags
Wear & carry
- Rain shell — even if the forecast says no
- Insulating mid layer for after sunset
- Closed shoes for camp, plus sandals
- Hat and sunscreen
- Daypack for the trail
Safety
- First aid kit — and know where it is
- Any personal medication
- Multi-tool
- Bug protection appropriate to the season
- Offline map or downloaded area map
- Written note of your plan left with someone at home
Easy to forget
- Camp chairs
- Quick-dry towel
- Cash for firewood and ice
- Garbage bags — more than you think
- A book, a deck of cards, no screens
- Camp shoes for a 2am walk
If the dog comes
- Collapsible bowls and extra water
- Long line and a stake
- Waste bags
- Proof of vaccination if the campground asks
- Paw check after every hike
- Something familiar to sleep on
One rule that saves more trips than any item on this list: pack the sleep system and the light system first, and check both before you leave the driveway. Almost every bad night traces back to one of those two.
Latest
Fresh from the field notes
New guides as we write them.
Start here
How to Plan a First Camping Trip You'll Actually Repeat
Most first camping trips fail for the same three reasons, and none of them are about gear quality. Here is the 48-hour weekend planned...
Families
Camping With Kids: The 12 Things That Actually Prevent Meltdowns
Most of what makes camping work with children has nothing to do with gear. Here is what actually moves the needle, in rough order...
Sleep
Why You Were Cold Last Time (And It Wasn't the Sleeping Bag)
Temperature ratings, R-values, and the single cheapest fix for a bad night outdoors. A plain-language guide to why camp sleep systems fail and how...
Buying help
Questions we would rather answer than have you guess at
None of these answers end in you having to buy something.
I have a weekend and almost no gear. What is the minimum?
Shelter, a sleep system, light, water and a way to make something hot. Everything else is comfort. If you are borrowing a tent, spend your money on the sleeping pad before anything else — it is the single biggest predictor of whether you sleep. The nine-step walkthrough covers the whole sequence.
Is more expensive gear actually warmer or lighter?
Sometimes. Price mostly buys weight savings and packability, not warmth. If you are car camping, a heavier, cheaper bag with a good pad under it will outperform an expensive ultralight bag on bare ground. Weight only starts mattering when you are carrying it.
How do I know if a sleeping bag rating is honest?
You mostly do not, and neither do we — which is why we label every temperature figure as manufacturer-rated. Treat any rating as a survival number and plan to be comfortable roughly 10-15°F above it. Add a liner or a warmer pad rather than trusting the number.
What should I not buy yet?
A tent, a second stove, a big cooler, anything titanium, and most camp gadgets. Go twice, notice what actually annoyed you, then buy the fix. Almost nobody regrets buying gear late; plenty of people regret buying it early.
Can I just ask you what to buy?
Please do. Send us the trip details — dates, location, who is coming, expected low temperature — and we will send back a shortlist. If the honest answer is that you already have what you need, that is what we will say.
Keep the list
Want the checklist in your inbox instead?
We will send it as a single email you can pull up at the campsite, plus a note whenever a new field guide goes live.